The Court held that the retrospective amendment introduced by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024 extending the ITC deadline to 30th November 2021 for FY 2017-18 to 2020-21 enures to the benefit of the petitioner who had filed returns within that window.
The Calcutta High Court has directed the setting aside of an adjudication order demanding Rs. 3,60,04,668 for FY 2019-20 on the ground of ITC denial, holding that the retrospective insertion of Section 16(5) of the CGST Act protects input tax credit claimed in returns filed before 30th November 2021 [M/s A2Z Infra Engineering Ltd v. Union of India & Ors].
Justice Smita Das De noted that Section 16(5), inserted with effect from 1st July 2017 by the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024, provides that in respect of invoices pertaining to FY 2017-18 to 2020-21, the registered person shall be entitled to ITC in any return under Section 39 filed up to 30th November 2021. The petitioner had filed GSTR-3B returns for July 2018 to March 2020 prior to that date.
The Court held that notwithstanding the insertion of the retrospective amendment, the respondent authorities had issued the impugned demand order without considering its applicability, and directed the matter to be reconsidered in light of Section 16(5).
2026-juristway.com-2980-HC(Calcutta)-GST | High Court of Calcutta | WPA 16747 of 2025 | 14.10.2026
